#pls tell me i’m not alone in this

[stcecelia]

mormon / LDS culture is having crushes on two different guys in your institute class but not telling your non-member friends because their names are Brigham and Hyrum 💀

#tumblrstake #pls tell me i’m not alone in this #also it’s weird bc I normally get crushes on girls but every once in a while i’ll get one on a guy #just to remind myself i’m Bisexual I guess

[death-himself]

playing dredge made me want to see mark play it because of his fear of the ocean which got me thinking of unus annus

and does anyone else have a moment from unus annus that no one talks about, or maybe wasn’t even emphasized in the video, that really hit for you

because for me it was that one video where mark went swimming in the ocean. i remember when he finally got back on the boat he was having what looked like a straight up panic attack

and watching this man that i’ve watched and looked up to for so many years having a panic attack made me feel this sort of “oh. you’ve felt that way too” sort of thing

idk how to phrase it, but i guess something about that moment as someone who’s had panic attacks probably just made me even more attached to mark and his content on a different level

#markiplier #unus annus #ethan nestor #pls tell me i’m not alone in this #like yes unus annus had its intentionally serious moments but let’s talk about the unintentionally serious moments #also still would love to see mark play dredge #even though he doesn’t really do more laid back multi episode games anymore

[logicallyblind]

i’ve added another song inspo to my WIPs cause i mean- tell me these lines do not sCREAM thiam-

i mean liam and theo kidnapped together, liam after one of monroe’s torture sessions delirious thoughts:

theo before and during the torture, looking at his blonde angel in the next cell cataloging every detail before he dies:

theo, after having the time to realise the extend of the damage the dread doctors inflicted upon him but also realising he needs to acknowledge how much he hurt liam during this in order to heal both of them:

theo after provoking the kidnappers to torture him in order to give liam a reprieve because he’s a self sacrifice fool:

theo, delirious after injected with some strand of poison forced to relive his childhood memories again and again and again and-

#if anyone has any other hcs to along with this lemmie know #anyways i’m listening to the great comet and this song came on and i l just sat here like :O #pls tell me i’m not alone in this #i might fast track this to the top of my WIP list tbh i really like this concept rn shan’t lie #teen wolf #thiam #theo raeken #liam dunbar

[wring-wraith]

whenever I’m upset with hoyoverse I revert to calling them mihoyo because there is nothing more demeaning than calling a company by their deadname

#genshin impact #hoyoverse #mihoyo #same with #Bighit #and #hybe #pls tell me I’m not alone in this

[crackhours]

i’ve been surrounded by gay people so much and seeing so many same sex couples on my socials that me saying “that’s gay” has somehow translated into a way of saying “that’s cute” and that has made the odd situation of whenever i see a straight couple i think is cute my instinct is to say “that’s gay” 😭😭😭

#someone help- #pls tell me i’m not alone in this #actually i probably am alone in this #i need help #thought dump

[bass-alien]

honestly sometimes I have to stay off here because I feel like being on here is just a reminder of how touch starved I actually am lmaooo

#someone pls tell me I’m not alone 😂

[oceanic-sunsets]

Mike Wheeler and Will Byers, Character Arcs explained by the Duffers and Letting Characters surprise you

I’ve been so excited to write this analysis because I love talking about character’s arcs, development, and storytelling in general. For this particular analysis, I’m going to focus mostly on Mike, the Wheelers, and Will, but I’ll touch on a few other important characters too to draw parallels/give examples. 

Once again, I’ll remind you that I believe Mike is gay, so my analysis will touch a lot on the subject. 

Now let’s get into it:) 

I’m going to start this off with a few notes from the Duffer’s Masterclass, lesson 7: Character Development. They tell us their creative process, how they come up with characters, what defines them, and later on, what their main arc will be. 

So as we can see, some names were changed, Will was Tommy and Mike was Joel. Something that stands out is that Mike, since he was named Joel, has always been intended to be Will’s best friend, the closest one of his friends. 

Now, for Sheriff’s daughter, the Duffers mention how she didn’t make the cut, and this is only me assuming, but it sounds like the role Max would later on have: she’s the new girl who two of the main kids are interested on. 

Next we are shown the following characters’ descriptions: 

The Duffers then explain how a lot of it “mostly stuck”, how some stuff didn’t make it into the show, and then we have characters whose name changed but their purpose stayed the same, or those who got some traits swapped up with a different character. For example, how the “Billy Flanagan” role was first represented by Steve back in S1, and later on by Billy, even with the same name. 

I’ll talk about a few characters, their old traits vs what I think (based on the show) they ended up changing. 

Karen Wheeler: She's first described as a great, overprotective mom, who suffocates Mike and tries to protect him from the evil around him. She hides from his husband. Projects happiness but actually very sad inside. This obviously didn’t stick. This sounds an awful lot like Joyce, word for word. See, instead: Julie Conley. We’ll get to that in a bit.

Ted Wheeler: Suburban, always busy with work, never around and not close to his son.  This is still pretty spot on. Ted Wheeler was always meant to be exactly who he is. But wait, could there be more to it?

Mike Wheeler: --introduce him with DnD-- shy, birthmark on his face and neck, which he is bullied for. No confidence outside his friend group. Ultimately coming of age, falls in love with El.  Mike’s connection with DnD and being bullied stayed. The rest, however? it all changed. Notice how Karen used to have a role more similar to what ended up becoming Joyce. Now, look at Mike’s first description. Sounds familiar, right? That’s because it basically describes our Will: shy, with an overprotective mom, no confidence outside his friend group and with the ultimately coming of age. Falls in love with El Mike. I’ll get back to Will in a bit, for now, let’s go back to Mike. The Duffers also mention how his character completely changed and it was influenced by Finn Wolfhard’s performance: the Mike we know isn’t shy, quite the opposite! he’s brave and fills up the group leader’s role. 

What does this mean? It means his character arc can’t stay the same, because his fundamental traits, those that define him as a character and give him a drive, also changed. See one of Will Byer’s previous descriptions: More normal. Rings any bell?:) 

Lucas Conley: Nerd, dungeon master, dresses in black, glasses, LOTR and other fantasy books, videogames, unkempt. As the Duffers say themselves: this is nothing like our Lucas Sinclair. Instead, it sounds more like…

You guessed it, Mike! With his Hellfire t-shirt, long hair, more edgy look and interest in videogames and fantasy. This is not the only reason why I think Mike ended up filling this character’s role. Just wait until you read the next ones.

Terry Conley: Lucas' dad, disappointed in his son, makes him shave his head and hair, abusive with his mother. Very obviously not our Lucas’ dad. Instead, it’s a mix of both Ted (disappointed) AND Lonnie (disappointed and also abusive). Why do I include Ted, when you could arguably say he’s not disappointed, just never there emotionally? Because of the hair thing and his wife’s description. By saying he makes his son shave his head and hair, it’s implied that it’s because it’s long/not “normal”, or “adequate” enough. Ted Wheeler is an absent father, but he also represents conformity and traditional values: he would not support his son’s hairstyle choices. 

Julie Conley: Lucas's mom, very sweet, doesn't stand up for Lucas, should leave dad but doesn't. Again, not our Lucas’s mom. This is word for word the Karen Wheeler we know: sweet but doesn’t really stand up for her kids. Should leave Ted (see: the almost-cheating plot and their unhappy marriage), but doesn’t. 

This is the family that’s meant to represent normalcy, conformity and traditional values, but they happen to have a rebellious son. THIS is the role that the Wheelers ended up filling, you see it very clearly from the very start with Nancy, a little bit with Mike (who then retreats, trying to fill his expected role) and we start seeing a glimpse of rebellious Mike again in s4. 

Will Byers: Mike’s best friend, more normal, more shy, goes missing, killed by an entity.  He doesn’t have much of a description, but besides going missing, two traits stay: Mike’s best friend, and shy. As I mentioned when I talked about Mike, since his traits changed, so did his character arc. He’s still the shy, missing kid that drives the show, defined partly by this experience and the events that revolve about it. We just have to add the missing pieces to it: (see: Mike Wheeler’s original description) lacks confidence outside of friendgroup. Overprotective mother. Tied with DnD. Bullied. Ultimately coming of age. Falls in love with El Mike. 

Need more convincing, more proof? Let’s take a look at this section of the show’s bible. 

Now again, with my notes. The yellow highlighter represents what is true to Will’s character, and the blue one represents Mike (yeah, I know, I know). 

“He’s never had a first kiss, much less a girlfriend. [...] he will discover a courage he didn’t know he had. By the end, he will even kiss a girl.” This was meant to be Mike’s original character arc. You COULD argue that it’s only about season 1, but even then, it is not true to the events of the show. Mike’s s1 story was NEVER about his insecurities with girls, not having a girlfriend, and finding courage. The entirety of Mike’s actions in s1 (and therefore, his arc) are driven by Will’s disappearance and the goal of FINDING him. It’s NEVER, not even once, not even when other characters try to convince him of it, getting a girlfriend and kissing a girl, despite having kissed El by the end of s1. 

Instead, whose plot is intrinsically TIED with romance and a confirmed coming-of-age story about finding courage within yourself? 

Yeah:) And you KNOW what’s the logical conclusion the Duffers have written for this particular arc? “By the end, he will even kiss a girl boy.” That’s the resolution to this kind of arc. NOT rejection. It is a pretty clear example of “Taking a character from point A to point B”. 

The Duffers say: “you can’t give everyone an amazing, big arc. [...] We gave Mike the biggest arc in terms of him coming of age” and then explain how IMPORTANT it is to not try to explain everything all at once, instead, drop hints so you're telling the audience, "this is an important part of this character and we're going to continue to explore it, but we're just getting started you can't just include it all, reveal it all too soon”. You can’t make it too complex from the very beginning either, instead, simplify and slow down.

Then they mention how they like to take a character that's a stereotype, make the audience believe they know this character, make them believe it’s a comfortable portrayal, something they know. And then you flip it and reveal there's more to this character because no one can be so easily defined. However, just HINT it. The reveal will happen on its own, at the right time for the story.

So, based on all of this… What do I think that happened?

This might be an unpopular opinion, but I do not think they planned byler from the very start. I think they had an idea of what they wanted to do, of what message they wanted the show to send, but found out along the way a different, more natural, and groundbreaking way to accomplish that. And I think they realized as soon as early s1, when they knew they wanted it to become a several seasons show rather than a limited series. It’s no coincidence there are elements like Will’s sexuality, homophobia, and conformity present from the very beginning. But they also found a way to portray this in a subtle way so it made sense in both outcomes: if they didn’t get a s2, s1 could still stand on its own, make sense, and feel resolved enough. If they got more seasons, they had more time to hint at this story, get the greenlight, and develop it over the course of all the seasons.

I also think the characters themselves, despite being written by them, lead them to this conclusion naturally. As they say in their masterclass… 

“You can drive and throw obstacles at them, but they can become very real, and sometimes they end up doing their own thing, surprising you”.

To finish this analysis, let’s do a little exercise. 

What is Mike’s Overall Arc, considering the following? 

His family represents conformity, an upper-middle-class household that’s apparently normal and very traditional. 

Both Nancy and Mike are meant to be the Rebellious Children in their very normal, traditional family.

Mike goes from leader to comic relief, to the Angry-closed off-messes-up character archetype. This is so evident that he even becomes unlikeable to most of the General Audience.

The Duffers remind us that hints are important and addressed later. Seemingly ‘weird’ actions and off personality have an explanation: there’s something deeper going on with Mike. You cannot address it all at once, it has to be over the course of episodes and seasons.

More advice from the writers: sometimes you plan something but end up realizing it works out better in a different way. Sometimes your own characters surprise you, and take you to the path that is more natural for them, who they are, and their story.

Mike’s character arc was never getting the girl once the Duffers really established who Mike was. 

And with that, I conclude this analysis. :) Wait for the next one! Please tell me your thoughts if you liked this and read this far. I love reading your tags and comments.

#byler #mike wheeler #will byers #stranger things #st analysis #anti mileven #my analysis #mike wheeler is gay #i don’t like begging for reblogs and notes #but i’m really proud of this one and spend an insane amount of time on it #so just this once i’m on my knees begging #if u liked it pls share it and tell me ur thoughts…… #seeing that people are interested in my analysis is what keeps me going and reminds me i’m not alone in this

[bruh-changbin]

hey does anyone else have a weird thing for backs like I simply cannot get with a man if he doesn’t have a nice back and CHRISTOPHER has such a nice broad back this pic killed me and changed the trajectory of my life forever like I wanna run my hands down his back and scratch it w my nails I wanna give him a back massage I wanna bite his back muscles I wanna make a charcuterie board on the broad expanse of his shoulders I wanna

#anyone else feel this way #like arguably a man’s back is one of the most attractive parts of his body YFM #pls tell me I’m not alone #look at how smooth his back is oh my gawwwwwd wanna sink my teeth into it fr #ugh need him #sky.sms #stray kids #bang chan

[shadowsbrainrot]

are you ever aspec and barely ever feel attraction at all but when you do it’s so strong you feel like you’re gonna die

#aspec #aroacespec #asexual spectrum #asexual #greysexual #demisexual #guys #lgbt #ace struggles #cries #someone tell me i’m not alone in this #pls

[brynnstic]

Fnaf movie was the most confusing thing I ever watched actually. Went in wanting answers and left with at least 20 more questions

#brynntxt #fnaf movie #fnaf #five nights at freddy's #pls tell me I’m not alone here

[kazemi-archive]

the embarrassment of coughing in public. then trying to stop it. only to end up coughing harder because it got worse by trying to stop it. and now you’re crying cause you’re coughing so hard. and now your nose is stuffy because you’re crying. and no i swear i’m not sick i’m just stupid and choked on a bit of water and it’s devolved and—

#tell me i’m not alone pls #𓇻 rambles

[fruit-teeth]

Having a very frustrating type of writer’s block that’s like. Okay I KNOW what’s supposed to happen, I’ve meticulously mapped it out in both my mind and in an outline, I know where the plot is going, and yet whenever I sit down to actually PUT IT INTO WORDS it comes out like “and then she destroyed the town…yippee!!!”

#just me things #text post #writing #pls tell me I’m not alone in this… #anyway I’m gonna eat some curry. yim yum

[sableyes-eyes]

i cannot be the only person on the planet who wants nicolas cage. the rest of y’all are just too scared to admit it.

#nicolas cage #i literally can’t stop thinking about him #it’s become a problem i think #someone pls tell me i’m not alone #im not delusional #you’re delusional #send an ambulance

[nico-the-overlord]

Tell me more about why or why not in tags, comments

Another poll but on petrichor

#I don’t understand how people like the smell of it #everyone I talk to seems to like it or adore it #I’m more so on the no/eh not really side #pls tell me I’m not alone #poll #polls #tumblr polls #grass #cut grass #fresh cut grass #smells

[eggflipflop]

anyone else kinda concerned that peter b got back together with mary jane? and had a kid with her?

bro she divorced you. over not wanting kids with your very dangerous lifestyle. kinda weird for her to openly tell you, like, ‘i don’t want to be married to you anymore’ or however she broke up with you, bring it to court and finalize it, and then you go crawling back to her giving into her demands? bro even if you decided you really did want kids after all, you gotta do that with a new person now. she’s no longer an option. what happened between you two was Not Love

#pls tell me i’m not alone here #spiderman #spiderverse spoilers #spiderverse #atsv #across the spiderverse #across the spider verse spoilers #peter b parker

[banterismylovelanguage]

I hate that I feel like I’m one of the few people that gets it when others talk about how alluring Kaeya’s voice is but at the same time doesn’t understand the same for Zhongli.

#the old man jokes are getting too real #zhongli’s voice is awesome. but. attractive? #is it just me. what is it #is it the low tone? #kaeya’s got this lilt that just. I have to listen you know #probably also helps that I never know if he’s mocking or not #maybe it’s me. I’m the problem #but idk someone hold my hand and tell me I’m not alone pls #kaeya #kaeya alberich #zhongli #genshin impact #also give me the audio clip proof #I will not be swayed so easily. probably